Tax collection posts slight growth in eight months

Tax collection grew by only 7.0 per cent during the first eight months of the current fiscal year widening the shortfall against target.
Officials said that the National Board of Revenue (NBR) might see a large deficit against its total target of Tk 2.96 trillion by year-end if this pace continues.
Until February, the NBR mobilised a Tk 1.33 trillion revenue, leaving a Tk 400 billion shortfall against its target, according to provisional figures with the NBR.
Income tax, VAT and customs duty collection grew by 12.13 per cent, 6.28 per cent and 3.74 per cent respectively in the period, the data showed.
The shortfall in revenue collection by NBR aggravated in July-February period. It was Tk 344 billion until January of the current fiscal.
The NBR will have to collect Tk 1.62 trillion more to achieve the original target Tk 2.96 trillion.
The revenue income has slowed this year compared to the NBR's average collection growth rate of 14 per cent during the last five years.
Officials said huge tax exemption ate up a major share of revenue this fiscal.
Ambitious target, non-implementation of the VAT law, pending revenue with court cases are the other major reasons.
Officials said the tax revenue collection might be revised to Tk 2.80 trillion for the current fiscal following the shortfall.
Talking to the FE, NBR chairman Md Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan said the board requested the Finance Ministry to bring down the tax revenue collection target to Tk 2.50 trillion considering the existing situation.
In July-February period, VAT wing collected Tk 529.07 billion, customs wing Tk 416.29 billion and income tax Tk 389.24 billion.
In FY 2018-19, the tax collector set VAT collection target at the highest Tk 1.10 trillion, followed by income tax collection target at Tk 1.0 trillion and customs duty at Tk 840 billion while the rest will be collected from other sources.
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